Saunders walk-off lifts the Eagles past Barton for their eighth consecutive win
On a day when Macauley Bailey launched her 50th career home run, it was Addie Saunders who delivered the biggest hit for Carson-Newman softball
Game 1
Game 1
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
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4 | 0 | 0 | 7 | X | 11 | 11 | 1 |
Game 2
Game 2
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 2 |
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1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 0 |
VIDEO: Michael Graves Interview
VIDEO: Macauley Bailey Interview
VIDEO: Addie Saunders Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – On a day when Macauley Bailey launched her 50th career home run, it was Addie Saunders who delivered the biggest hit for Carson-Newman softball (13-1, 0-0). After a run-rule in game one, the Eagles surrendered what was once a four-run lead before Saunders stepped up with a walk-off single to collect a sweep over Barton (6-6, 0-0).
Game one saw C-N plate seven runs in the bottom of the fourth en route to an 11-0 win to kick things off on a frigid Sunday. In the second contest, tensions rose until the late-game heroics from Saunders silenced all, 7-6.
For head coach Michael Graves, it marked the eighth straight win for his squad, matching the longest winning streak from last season. Despite the sweep and extra theatrics, he's looking for more consistency from his team.
"That's a scrappy team we played, but we let them off the hook a lot. We continue to not know the strike zone, swung at a lot of bad pitches, left runners on base again," Graves said. "I don't know how many times I've said this, seems like a broken record. Had runners on base, and not only that, and not only did we have them on base, we had them in scoring position."
Carson-Newman 11, Barton 0
Game one saw Lorelei Spradlin (Blacksburg, Va.) get the start. She came out strong with a strikeout in a scoreless first inning after a tough midweek outing.
The offense wasted no time, lighting a fire in the bottom half of the first. Malyiah Smith reached on a walk, then stole second and moved to third on a bunt single from Abbi Martin (Gadsden, Ala.). With the first two on, Macauley Bailey (Cross Plains, Tenn.) launched her second home run of the season, depositing it deep to left center, 3-0. It was a milestone moment for the senior as it marked her 50th career home run, adding on to her program-best number.
"It felt super good, yesterday I was struggling to make a connection with the ball," Bailey said. "So to come out in the first at-bat and get a good swing and to see it fly, the wind was blowing out, it was really nice."
After the Barton starter was chased following the Bailey homer, the Eagles added more with two outs. Sarah Walker (Mills River, N.C.) roped a double to right center, advanced another 60 feet on a wild pitch, setting the table for an Addie Saunders (Radford, Va.) RBI single, 4-0.
Spradlin picked up four more strikeouts across the next three frames to keep the advantage at four for C-N. The sophomore was calm, cool and collected, working through long at-bats, letting her defense step up to make plays in moments.
In the bottom of the fourth, the offense exploded once more. It started as Katey Mathena (Blacksburg, Va.) and Reese Winchester (San Diego, Calif.) reached via free passes, but the next two would be retired. Bringing Bailey back to the dish as she bashed a single up the middle to score Mathena and Winchester. An Anne Marie Richards (Spring Hill, Tenn.) double allowed Bailey to go from first to home, 7-0.
Bailee Worley (Black Mountain, N.C.) replaced Richards as a pinch runner and scored after a Grace Gregory (White House, Tenn.) base hit. Back-to-back singles from Walker and Saunders loaded the bases for Mathena, who began the inning with a walk. The sophomore laced a double into the right-center gap, clearing the bases, 11-0. In the fourth, the Eagles scored seven runs on six hits, all coming with two outs.
A 1-2-3 fifth inning closed the book on the third run-rule of the season for C-N. Spradlin went the distance, striking out five and allowing just three hits. It marked the fourth consecutive complete game from a Carson-Newman pitcher.
"Lorelei is a great pitcher, everybody knows it. You know, the ball just wasn't moving at Shorter," Graves said. "But she came back, and that's the Lorelei we're used to seeing, and we want to see."
Offensively, the Eagles were 11-for-22 as a team, including 7-for-10 with runners in scoring position, and 9-for-13 with runners on and with two outs.
Carson-Newman 7, Barton 6
For game two, it was Lacey Keck (Knoxville, Tenn.) making her first career start in the circle. She got the ball rolling with a strikeout as she retired Barton in order.
Her offense gave her support, as Mayliah Smith led off with a walk, stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error by the catcher. She came in to score on an RBI single from Abbi Martin, 1-0.
After another 1-2-3 second frame for Keck, the freshman ran into trouble in the top of the third. The first three reached base for the Bulldogs, loading the bases with no one out, and they tied the game up on a Makenzie Cyzik sacrifice fly. They took the lead on an infield single from Madison Mercer, 2-1.
Although the Eagles responded in a five-run home half of the third, aided by fielding troubles for Barton.
Martin got on thanks to her second hit of the day and moved to second on a wild pitch. Following a pop-out, Anne Marie Richards came through a base hit to score Martin, knotting it up. Following a Grace Gregory walk, Sarah Walker hit a frozen rope that was dropped by the left fielder, Makenzie Burroughs, allowing both Richards and Gregory to score, 4-2.
As the inning continued, the bases got loaded up after an Addie Saunders walk and Katey Mathena was hit by a pitch. In a bizarre situation, Riley Sikes (Powell, Tenn.) was inserted as a pinch hitter. The senior normally operates from the circle, but she was patient and worked a four-pitch walk, driving in Walker for Sikes' first career RBI. C-N added one more as Smith walked in Saunders, 6-2.
Scoreless frames in the fourth and fifth moved the game along before Barton cut into the lead with an RBI single from Elana Griffin, 6-3, in the sixth.
Outside of the blemish in the sixth, Walker was showcasing her two-way ability, as she retired the first two batters in the seventh, putting the Eagles one out from a sweep.
However, the Bulldogs had other plans. An RBI double from Madison Mercer cut the lead down to two before a 13-pitch at-bat from Savannah Olson ended in a single that scored Mercer. After a pitching change to Kaliah Merritt (Wayne, W.V.), Alexis Bicondova tied the game on a single, 6-6. With the go-ahead run in scoring position, Merritt induced a pop-up, giving the Eagles the chance to walk it off.
Grace Gregory kick-started the bottom of the seventh with a sizzling shot to left center for a double. Bailee Worley was inserted as a pinch runner, and she advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt from Walker, setting the table for Addie Saunders. The sophomore delivered with a seeing-eye ground ball through the right side for a walk-off single, 7-6.
It was the first walk-off of the season for Carson-Newman and it secured its eighth straight win.
"I was visualizing what I needed to do and the pitch that I was going to drive, and thankfully, I was able to do that," Saunders said. "I think I'm seeing the ball better and trusting my hands getting through the ball."
Another road trip lies ahead for Carson-Newman with a trip to Spartanburg, South Carolina, for a twin bill with Converse. The Eagles defeated the Valkyries earlier this season on February 9th, 6-0. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both games can be heard on cneagles.com/live, or fans can watch on YouTube with a live look at the broadcast crew on press row.
